22 years in 60 seconds!

22 years in 60 seconds!

(This is a eulogy to my dear Dr. Theresa Bhatty aunt)

“Dust we are: into dust shall we”, I am reminded of these wisdom pearls as I sit beside my dear aunt who looks beautiful, white as snow. This motionless, quiet figure looked divine, as if almighty had descended on Mother Earth. No longer will these eyes open nor will her lips move. With a heavy heart, as I internally bid goodbye to her, my second innings –post marriage life flashes in front me in a phenomenal fast forward supersonic speed.  

After marriage, I changed base from a metro city to a small city. Life seemed to have taken a back step by around twenty years- this was the down side. On the brighter side, I came across many amazing, compassionate, genuine souls who helped me move forward in my journey in a happy, comfortable way. One such noble soul is our very close family friend, who left for her higher journey a week ago. She adorned many roles in my life. Initially, she was an aunt, then my gynecologist, my professional colleague, later my friend and my second mother. She had a knack to communicate. She made every person very comfortable and relaxed. She knew how to talk to people of different gender and age groups. She was an avid reader and kept herself abreast with all the latest advancements in her field. She was always in gratitude mode and never ever complained.

Although we had age difference of thirty five years or so, we got along like buddies. One could discuss anything with her without the fear of being judged. She had a great digestion system and seemed to digest all the talks very well. I learnt a lot about life, marriage, profession, people, religion etc. Discussion in medical field always benefits the patient. She would take great pains in order to give the best to her patients. She was one of my youngest regular blog readers. She never texted rather always called up to express her views on my posts. Her values were very similar to my Momsie. Many a times, when I felt my soul battery showed low charging, I used to join her for breakfast. This brief interaction charged me instantaneously. Such is an aura of a divine soul.

Words can never be enough to express how I feel. The void is getting bigger. People I love are crossing over to another dimension in the parallel world. I remind myself that I cannot see them but they can always see me. Best is to live by their values. They are here only, very much amongst us, but in parallel dimension. Such souls become our guardian angels and always guide us.

This Valentine day, please express your love. Love is the most powerful emotion and force which require full expression.

Keep loving, keep caring, keep reading, keep sharing.

Love,

Juju.

“World of words”

 “World of words”

To celebrate my blog crossing 16 k views, I am sharing my experience in the “World of words”. There is a striking difference in publishing your own book and being a co-author in anthologies. The outcome is a beautifully published book with you as a author having copyrights of your write up in both scenarios.

The whole experience and time taken for this process is like having a baby. On a lighter note, I feel that publishing your own book, is like having a baby via normal course.  You are a part of this whole journey every minute. All the stages of development are known to you and you feel the joy and downside too as the work progresses. Inspite, of hiring the best team, nothing moves till you give a green signal. At each step, you need to approve. Whereas, as a co-author in Anthologies, it’s like having a baby via surrogacy. You give your write up to the concerned publisher for approval. Once it gets approved, you can just sit back and relax. The entire burden is on the compiler (who is the surrogate), who is responsible for collecting all write ups, getting corrections done, co-ordinating with all authors, finalizing book cover design etc, till the time, the book gets published. 

Writing is being in meditative state. All one needs is silence, a relaxed physical and mental state. Automatically your fingers start typing your thoughts and after half an hour or so, you witness a miracle. Many of you will relate to this. Once you run out of thoughts, you conclude . What you see is a masterpiece in front of your eyes.

After a sabbatical, I am penning my thoughts in my blog write up. I have been exploring and working with few publishers to understand this world of words. In my experience, the joy of writing your book cannot be expressed in words or described. It’s a feeling, a experience just like feeling your own baby inside you. Well, in certain situations, one can adopt the surrogacy method. You define your own rules. Afterall, one should be at the driving seat and hold the steering wheel in one's own journey of life.

Keep sprinkling your magic dust wherever you go, whomsoever you meet.

Love,

Juju

Ahoi Ashtami –Celebration of her creation.

Ahoi Ashtami –Celebration of her creation# Ten commandments

P.S. This is one of my popular blogpost which has been edited. The Ten commandements are by writer's own experience. Any difference in opinion is deeply respected. 

A routine casual good morning greeting to my daughter (who is in hostel) led to this write up when my daughter remarked, “Mummy! if you are observing this fast for our well being then, we should also keep a fast for our parent's well being.” 

Ahoi Ashtami celebrated on the eighth day from Poornima and a week prior to Diwali i.e. Amavasya, falls on the same day as Diwali. As compared to “Karva Chauth” the enthusiasm and commercialization of this festival is to a far lesser degree may be minimal (my feeling, not intended to hurt anyone's sentiments). For me, observing this fast is much more than a ritual- it's celebration of me # my blessing to create. While sipping hot cup of tea, I penned down few thoughts which crossed my mind for an effective parent-child relationship - Ten commandments. 

1.Communication: We are not born as parents. We are on this journey of teaching our children; many a times our children teach us how to become effective parents. As my FPG says, effective communication is a key and this key should keep the communication door unlocked at all times. Listen to your child.
2.Love: Love never spoils: it always nurtures. Give unconditional love to your child. Such children are emotionally stable and decision-makers.
3.Time: Give your child ample time, whenever ( might be difficult for working parents ) but ensure you spend quality time or have coping mechanisms so that a child feels parents are approachable at all times.
4.No substitutes: Never give materialistic things as a substitute for your time. It,s a child's right to spend time with parents. In working couples, the help of grandparents or helpers should be sought.
5.Faith: Have faith and trust in your own child. Always believe what your child says. A child should have complete faith that his/her parents believe him/her
6.Balance: strike a balance amonst yourselves as parents. When one parent gets angry, ensure the other parent is compassionate. A child should always have one parent for comfort.
7.Criticism: Never criticize your child ( Never ever in front of their friends or others). Majority of us  don,t even know the difference between constructive criticism and destructive criticism. Ensure as a parent that you follow constructive criticism only.
8.Don't glorify yourself: As a parent, we normally tell stories about our academic excellence or our success stories only. We all know that everyone has failures as well as successes. There can never be only successes. We should talk about hard times and failures too. Don't, glorify yourself in front of your children. Behave like normal human beings who do things wrong and  convey that there's nothing wrong in it.
9.Answer your child's queries. My FPG's favorite words, if you don't satisfy your child's query, they will try to gain information from other sources (friends, internet, etc) which may not be appropriate or correct or both. So, try your level best to quench their thirst by answering their questions.
10.The joy of giving: Teach your child the joy of giving by involving them in charity works and make them conditioned to this thought process of “What I can do to make things better or what can I contribute ?” .With the new academic year, ask them to keep books, bags, stationery, clothes aside to be given to needy. Charity begins at home. Give things to your helpers.

There are many many more. Each day I learn new things from my little monks. My favorite pet lines which my children have heard umpteen number of times. There is nothing like a pass or fail -only result. There is no success or failure: only experience. You are not your marks, don't associate yourself with your marks. Each one of us is living in their own unique time zones. So go at your own pace, don't speed up or follow others as it will only lead to accidents. Pledge to fast from your bad words/ habits. 

Pray all of us find our own time zones and live a happy fulfilled life.
Love,
Juju  

Karwa Chauth#10 commandments

 TEN COMMANDMENTS OF MARRIAGE

P.S. This is edited from my last year's blogpost.

"Karwa chauth”, is an auspicious festival in our culture where a married girl prays for long life of her husband.  This is celebrated with immense integrity, love and faith for one,s spouse. This holds a multi dimensional aura with few challenging angles as to why a wife should fast ? Why not her husband ? Infact, there is not a single fast in our culture (as far as my knowledge goes) where a husband fasts for his wife. 

This school of thought even beguiled me for some time in my initial years. However, I followed this ritual as told by my elders. In my sub-conscious mind, a set of dialogues/phrases played (which everyone must have heard) like : “ Marriage is an institution”,“ You should accept your spouse as he is and not make an attempt to change him – unconditional acceptance”

Marriage for a boy means- end (in terms of settlement) whereas for a girl ( > 50%), it is the beginning of a journey (fairy tale ) thanks to Yash Chopra and Karan Johar persons who are epitomes of romance and honeymooning in Swiss Alps. 

Being on this journey for  two decades with few ups and down , I have penned down “ Ten Commandments for a happy marriage”.

First, is “Importance” – make your spouse feel important as much so that your head rises and heart beats proudly for your mate's glory and achievement.

Second, is “Romance” – maintain your sense of humor, make your loved ones smile, let the spark be alive.

Third is “Decisions” – Let the other one choose, make conscious sacrifices, for in their smiles lies your own joy.

Fourth is “ Independence”- Let your mate often be on themselves. A bird knows that it,s heart lies in the nest and it even knows better when flies alone…

Fifth is “ Co-ordination” – plan for working in harmony , plan evening dates with your spouse , plan intimacy.

Sixth is “ Social sphere” – never block the freedom of expression in everybody,s presence. NEVER ! NEVER ! interrupt or try to correct your spouse in front of others.

Seventh is “Communication” – be open, express freely ( more of positive statements ) like you love/ care him/ her every day. Marriage is not a Saving,s Bank A/c. It is a current A/c where one needs daily deposits ( of love, care , compassion etc) and withdrawals (of negativity, remorse, arguments etc..)

Eighth is ” Arguments “- Differences are bound to happen, key is learning to agree to disagree (My FPG,s favourite point), so that arguments metamorphosize into discussions.

Ninth is “Companionship”- Be united ( as one entity) in front of others even if there is disagreement at home (My FPG,s favourite point). Your togetherness is your strength which will keep ill wishers / home breakers at bay.

Last is “Appreciation” – Appreciate your spouse for his/ her unique identity. Don,t try to change. Appreciate for who they are. The world has enough of critics already. 

A wise person once said, "you have accepted a rose and a rose can’t become a jasmine.  However hard you may try. " Appreciate your mate. Marriage is like wine; becomes intense, aromatic and soul soothing with each passing moment.

Celebrate Karwa Chauth with pure love, bliss and dedication, for your husband with no analysis and conditions ! There should be no compulsion. It's a conscious choice. 

May God be with all of you. 

Love, 

Juju

Walk in the park# Life's lesson

Walk in the park# life's lesson 

A bright Saturday early morning, overcast Delhi skies, I tie my favourite sneakers and set out for a walk in the park. Never realized, as to how every step that I took, I got a clearer picture of life. It seemed the whole circle of life was moving in this park right front of my eyes.

Most of the faces were unfamiliar. The faces I remember from my childhood days seemed to have crossed over to the other dimension. The park was alive with life. Toddlers in their prams, children playing sports, young people running or walking, elderly chitchatting on benches, few doing exercise in open gym. Green grass patch had small group of yoga class. The centre clearing was stage for hip hop dance class. This sight left me spellbound. Birds were singing in harmony, butterflies added their fluttering notes, their rhythm, squirrels running from one tree to another. I felt overwhelmed. I could visualize myself in different age groups in all these scenes. My trance was broken by “ Hello Juju!”.

I turned around and saw my neighbour with her mother. The recognition brought a lump in my throat. The elderly lady was a strict person who used to poke her nose in all our play activities be it on the road or in the park. She always had some nasty discouraging comment. Once a strong women, was now a frail person with Alziehmer's and required help to walk. Greetings exchanged, I completed my walk. All throughout parallel scenes were played in my mind. The spots where I was three decades ago had new children and faces of many neighbours were missing.   

Mother Earth had just taught me yet another lesson of meaning of circle of life. I am reminded of lines from the famous song - “Main pal do pal ka shayar hoon, pal do pal meri kahani hai …Kal aur aayeinge mujhse behtar gaane wale aur tumse behtar sunne wale….” ( I am a poet for few moments and so is my poetry …..tomorrow new poets will be there and so will be new audience…”).

Enjoy the miracle called “Life”.

Love,

Juju. 

It's always about you # Never us!

Reader's Choice # Stop comparing!

Reader's Choice # Stop comparing!

(P.S. The name of reader in Reader’s Choice blog write ups is never disclosed. Any close resemblance to anyone is purely incidental. In this write up, I will dwell upon marital relationship from girl’s viewpoint to honor Reader’s request).

Fingers of our hand are unequal in length. The purpose of each finger is different. Do we ever compare our little finger with our thumb or fore finger? Never! The answer is so obvious. Then why do we compare ourselves with others in many aspects. One tends to compare houses, vehicles, income, family, children, their college etc and even relationships. Two different souls with entirely different backgrounds tie the nuptial knot with a promise to live till last breath and beyond. Initial euphoria gets settled and reality hits both of them. In patriarchal society, the girl leaves her house, surname and gives her best shot to whole heartedly accept the boy’s family. (Exceptions are always there.)The boy is used to his own home’s style and sees a girl’s world through his mother or sister’s eyes. This forms the crux. The girl he is marrying to has a different set of eyes. There are bound to be differences. To top it, there is a basic genetic difference in their physical and mental outlook. A little bit of understanding, patience and acceptance can help in smooth sailing.

The girl’s life undergoes a major change. Besides, adapting to house habits, food habits there is another important thing – adapting to language, tone and pitch of the members. The tone and pitch of one’s words can be interpreted in different ways by the recipient. Louder tones sound rude and cause hurt. Few differ and believe, “It’s the content what matters and not the tone”, easy to say but difficult to practice.

Coming back to comparing topic, turbulence sets in when the boy compares the girl with his mother or sister or friend’s wife. This leads to souring and obviously the relationship smells. Everyone is a unique creation of Almighty, how can anyone doubt this. It can lead to feeling of inadequacy and incompleteness. How this habit leads to gas lighting, one can really never know.

A request to all couples, please accept your spouse as he/she is, don’t try to change – you will not only waste your energy but damage the bond too. Books which I recommend to all couples are "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus", "Hundred things, I wish I knew before I got married, "Momsie Popsie Diary- Tea time chit-chat on living life."

Each one is unique and is different. Unconditional love and acceptance is the key.

Secure your own key.

Love,

Juju

Reader's Choice # Appreciate the living

Reader's Choice # Appreciate the living

(P.S. The name of reader in Reader’s Choice blog write ups is never disclosed. Any close resemblance to anyone is purely incidental.)

Many a times, one gets so lost in the memory of someone real close that one tends to ignore the living. The power of human mind has not been harnessed as yet. The memory of those who have crossed over into another realm outweigh the reality.  Thoughts of deceased one, keep on playing in one's mind and all the moments of association seem to be sewn together in a shorter time frame. The thought traffic is so much that it leads to slowing of neuronal signal traffic. A grieving heart cannot see beyond the grief. Many a times, one identifies the mistakes done with the deceased soul, and unknowingly repeats it with those living. It is of utmost importance to learn from past experience so as to not commit mistakes in the present.

Covid pandemic has been a witness to countless untimely deaths in various age groups. In my outer circle, a young death happened. Their family members were in a state of shock. The same shock in third degree relatives caused few whispers. Generally, during such times, the talk centre’s around destiny and fate. There is repetition of the course of events which lead to early mortal exit of a noble soul. Things get so whisked up and family tends to disconnect with present. It takes a man of great wisdom to break this spell and motivate the rest of the family to be aware of present and plan accordingly.

The grief should not outweigh the love for other living members. Else, it causes scarring in once so called beautiful relationships. Grieving is a let go mechanism and is important, but more important is to cherish the living, May God be with all of us and bless us a clear vision. Always remember, to be God loving and not God fearing. Love creates miracles.

Love,

Juju.

Reader's Choice # Fault in stars

Reader's Choice # Fault in stars

(P.S. The name of reader in Reader’s Choice blog write ups is never disclosed. Any close resemblance to anyone is purely incidental.)

It’s a normal human tendency to find fault exteriorly whenever something goes wrong in our lives. It’s so easy to look outside and needs immense courage to dwell inside. Gradually, one tends to label it as “It’s all in my stars, not my fault.” This one phrase seems to erase the guilt. Is it really so?

My work place’s tranquility was broken when a friend literally barged into my office, visibly disturbed and murmuring, “He always does this to me, it’s my fault, my destiny is star crossed, I have faulty stars and so on. As a pro active reflex, I played my favorite Buddhist chants and ordered two cups of strong milk tea. After pacing my office for few minutes, she eased and sat on my reclining couch. I did not utter a word and patiently waited for her to speak up. She started off with the usual difficulties one faces while living in a joint family, issue of maid servants, division of labor, mismanagement and so on. For every wrong doing, she was felicitated with the blame garland. Nothing new seemed to be coming up. I slowly sipped my tea and waited for the final volcano to erupt. Suddenly, tears started rolling down her cheeks and she uttered,” The fault lies in my stars. Whatever I try to do rebounds back and shatters me with a greater force than the previous one. Every time, I feel I am back to square one. Nothing seems to have changed over the past two decades.” I just listened quietly without any interruptions. Gradually, her verbal energy dissipated and she started sipping tea. Only glances were exchanged.

I spoke slowly and calmly, “Every time, you react in the same way, then how can you expect a different outcome. Why blame the stars?  Stop labeling these as problems and label them as situations.  Nothing is permanent. Be pro active and try to handle these situations in a different way. Stop looking at the same door. God has made many doors for you. You need to open other doors. And I promise, the outcome will be different”. Before, I could finish the last word she wiped her tears, hugged me and smiled. Further she spoke, “Now I know that I owe this and don’t have fault in the stars. There is no fault. All this while, I have been looking at the same door, ignoring others doors. Now is the time to open another door.” Tying her hair into a knot, she left my office. The stride in her walk told me she has finally learnt the lesson of “Walk the talk”, I have been endorsing since a time immemorial.

“A lot can happen over tea.”

Love,

Juju

Reader’s Choice # Father-son: the less spoken about relationship- Part 2

Reader’s Choice # Part 2

Father-son: the less spoken about relationship

P.S. This is not a gender based write-up. Name of the person on whose request this has been written is strictly confidential. It's a lengthy write up for a blog hence, it is divided into 2 parts.  

 

Many a times, father asserts his position and power which doesn’t go well with his children. There is hairline difference between being assertive and dictatorship. Many a times, father’s behavior is judged as dictatorship by his own children especially son. Daughter’s tend to bend /bow down whereas as a son may confront. It seems like you are against your own self (a thirty years younger version). 

Children learn by imbibing what they experience. Parent’s actions and conduct leaves a lasting impression than their words/preaching. In an attempt to prevent the child from committing mistakes, which parents did at the same age as that of their son's, usually an urgency or impatience creeps in which disturbs their mental state. The child's growth chart is always different from his parents. Let this chart be original. Everyone learns in his own unique style. 

“While you thought nobody was watching you: I watched you!’’ This silent message is in the mind of every child. So, be conscious of your own actions as a responsible adult/parent. If the child doesn’t see you respecting your own parents, no amount of schooling or motivation will let the child respect you. If a child doesn’t see you behaving well with your staff or general public, he will think of it as a normal way. Do lay down correct moral values. Be a role model for your child. In between father and son, none should try to enter, be it mother/wife or sister/daughter. A father's heartbeat can be heard in his son's chest. All pain vanishes if someone is hugged at the right time. Precision of timing is also important. A father should try to inculcate soft emotions too. 

“Angry young man “phrase has been always shown as a sign of macho man whereas a compassionate, lively man is always portrayed as second in lead – as hero’s best friend. I often wonder that during the entire film, the hero tries his best to be with his lady love and has to face all obstacles and villains. Whereas, the so-called chilled out friend hangs out with his lady love throughout the length of the movie. Although the friend is not glorified as a hero yet, he seems to be living a happy fulfilled life on his own terms. The hero under the ‘macho man’ burden spends his energy and time in fighting to live a peaceful life.

My humble message to all the fathers – Be the man/human being you want to see your son grow up as. Your son is watching you, imbibing your actions. You are under the radar all the time. Be more of a friend, more of a guide, more approachable. The time machine is ticking and soon your son will outgrow you in stature and position. Look at yourself and make the changes in your own good self, which you think your son needs to change. 

There is no perfect parenting book. No prefect father son relationship. It  is based on a concrete foundation of love, faith and trust.

Hope you elevate your relationship to the highest level.

Love,

Juju.

Reader’s Choice # Are we non judgemental enough !

Reader’s Choice #Are we non-judgemental enough! 

In this Reader’s choice series, request is to highlight body shaming

(P.S. The name of reader in Reader’s Choice blog write up is never disclosed. Any close resemblance to anyone is purely incidental.)

God has taken every bit of care to create unique living beings. We, the highly evolved human beings have somehow forgotten this and try to judge each and every thing, aspect and God's creation too. Birth and death, day and night, hot and cold, dry and rains, greenery to deserts, everything on this planet co-exists. The essence lies in the existence of other realm. Somewhere during the evolution, one part of being non judgmental has become rudimentary and being judgmental has hypertrophied.

Right from the time a soul takes a mortal form, so does the judgement of our society. One is judged on basis of color, sex, caste, creed, weight, height etc. There are different judgment parameters for age groups and sex. In males, height, weight, education and income figures top the list. Whereas in females, the toppers are color, weight, height, cooking skills, grooming etc. Education and income figures are towards the rear end in the list. Later on, the leading questions are age of marriage, children, post delivery weight gain issues and so on.

Body shaming has gained importance recently. Women are vocal about it and are boldly condemning it. A women’s body goes through a lot of changes from the time she enters teenage till child bearing. Each one is aware. Majority of the women judging other women have undergone these changes too. Surprising or shocking! (Can’t even think of an appropriate word).

In our beloved society, people care about us, much more than one can think about themselves, how one lives, and with whom etc ? How does one dresses up, their physical appearance and so on and on. They feel it is their moral duty to tell a overweight lady that she needs to lose weight for her own good self. Imagine! What a way to do social service? Most of the times, the person giving advise has BMI more than normal range. Such acts lead to undue building up of stress. This is evident as seen by rise in mental issues. 

I conclude by a quote which needs to be ingrained in every living mind, “If you have nothing nice to say to someone, better to keep your lips sealed and smile.” Every one deep down knows everything. Please refrain from making the person aware of it. The most soothing word is a word of appreciation. If you can’t appreciate, it’s absolutely fine. But, please don’t judge.  

Let’s pledge to be non judgy.

Love,

Juju